March 25, 2007

Or should that be "religion?" First item is that talking bobble head himself, Pat Robertson:

"On a recent CBN show, Robertson warned that if Americans keep electing Muslim Americans they will 'take over the government' and turn the country into a theocracy (surely nothing Mr. Robertson has ever contemplated). His solution? Churches should engage in civil disobedience--flagrantly violate IRS regulations and work to get Christians elected. Atrocities documented (including a transcript of his remarks) below."

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Item two: Andrew Sullivan points to an odd point of comparison between Islamist and Christian Right policies--keeping the ladies under wraps.

"Ladies, this is where you can get confused. Many women would think guys are ‘all about’ women who flaunt their bodies. I am here to attempt to speak for us Christian men fighting the fight for purity. Women like this disgust and frustrate me. They take advantage of something that God intended to be beautiful. They lure men away from that which they truly love. They make men like me fight and struggle, and cause many to fall. THESE WOMEN SHOULD NOT BE ADORED OR FOLLOWED! Christian sisters, please do not think that this attention is anything more than a result of short-sighted shallow men who are sexually frustrated and unwilling to follow God’s plan for sex. To me, women who flaunt their bodies make me turn my head, repulsed, and pray that God would guard my heart, eyes, and mind, and that somehow He would show them His infinite love, and that they don’t need to act in this way to be loved."

As Sully notes, it is all the fault of women. To be sure, I don't disagree that many young women seem to have learned bad lessons about this--that being cute or sexy is their way to get attention. But blaming their sexuality for male thoughts is ridiculous. This reminds me of an argument I had with a friend of mine. I read a story in the Dallas paper about this Christian group called "Point of Grace" (I think). The interview with the very attractive women revealed that their mission in life (besides singing rather vapid Christian music) was to stop young girls from dressing badly. I admired their dedication and willingness to ignore things like poverty and discrimination. Sigh.

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Another story from Sullivan, though I have seen it elsewhere. While more political than religious, it has implications--serious ones--for the religious right and their apparent political power. A recent Pew report suggests that Bush and Rove are doing more to undermine Republican policies than anything that the Dems could dream of.

"Religious intensity is falling; acceptance of gay people is rising. The younger generation is the most secular of any. Support for the military has never been stronger - people don't blame the troops for the war. The country is divided down the middle on torture, but still in favor of preemptive war in some circumstances. Sorry, Dinesh, but women's equality and freedom are values now overwhelmingly popular among all groups, including Republicans, and strongest among the young. Since Bush has been president, there has been a sharp decline in the number of Americans favoring "old fashioned values about family and marriage." In the last ten years, opposition to gay marriage has dropped ten points and support has risen ten points. There has also been a striking twelve point increase in support for affirmative action over the past decade - all of it among whites."

Those trends cannot be good for our GOP brethren, unless they are willing to go back to the GOP of old--one not run by idiots and liars. I suggested that Bush was the worst thing for evangelicals, and it appears the worst thing also for true conservatives.

Perhaps the next GOP candidate will be able to read, speak in complete sentences, and think beyond the dumb (use less drugs).

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